FG Resumes Payment To Ex-Militants

The Federal Government have resumed the delayed payments to former militants in the oil-rich Niger River delta, addressing some grievances amid attacks that cut crude production close to a 30-year low.

This is contained in a statement by the coordinator of the presidential amnesty program, Paul Boroh as he said about 30,000 ex-fighters, who were receiving a 65,000 naira monthly stipend, were told the government would resume paying stipends after a two-month “hiccup.”

Meanwhile, the Federal Government has also said it is trying to engage militants to establish a cease-fire after oil output fell to 1.4 million barrels a day, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources Emmanuel Kachikwu said on Monday.

Following several years of relative calm, the attacks by the Delta Avengers started in February after president Buhari announced the suspension of security contracts and payments that had turned earlier militants into protectors.

Boroh said he had given assurance to the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta militants that their patience was appreciated by President Muhammadu Buhari, who backs the amnesty and plans to invest heavily in the region.

The amnesty program is set to end in 2017 and the government earlier this year said it planned to cut financing by half to about $100 million.